Video games at work? How IBMers are learning while they play

Did you know that IBM makes video games—proper video games with 3D graphics, avatars and online leaderboards? The games are used as an internal IBM learning tool. I spent a week with the team designing the next iteration of the game at IBM’s Growth Market Headquarters in Shanghai, China.

Development of the games, called Innov8, is led by the IBM Center for Advanced Learning. The first thing you notice when playing the game series is how well the game captures the feel of working at IBM. Your avatar walks around cubicle farms that look just like the real thing, down to the brand of phones on the desks. Employees sit in meetings with black ThinkPad laptops open. Chief Learning Architect of Innov8, Yi Qing He, explains that “even the office carpet in the game is something you’d find in any IBM office around the world.”

There are two Innov8 games already released: one on smarter transportation and another on cloud computing. Another, on business analytics, is on the way. The games are aimed at technical sellers and IT architects looking to learn IBM’s technologies and methodologies. You play the role of an IBM architect working on a client engagement. You send and receive emails, participate in meetings and receive advice (and occasionally some sharp criticism) from your mentor. Like the physical environment, conversations with other characters in the game are authentically IBM. On several occasions the game reminded me of real client meetings I’d attended.

Why use gaming for education?

Patty Farh is the Program Director for technical vitality strategy in the growth markets, and she has a challenge. There are many technical professionals working for IBM in the growth markets that need to be trained in IBM’s methodologies and technologies. How can she educate so many people in a cost effective and efficient manner?

Traditional education methods struggle to scale to the reach and speed needed. Patty notes that “many of these young people have different learning styles. They’ve grown up with video games. If you ask someone to read or listen to something, they’ll retain maybe 10-20% of that information. But people remember 90% of what they experience, even if that experience is virtual through playing a game.”

Thousands of IBMers have already played through the first two games, and Patty is delighted with the results. “95% of players are happy with the game, and they’ve reported a 41% skill improvement after playing the game,” Patty told me.

Gamification and the social learning wrapper

Raymund Lin is responsible for incorporating gamification techniques into the game series. He told me, “Gamification is about bringing gaming elements into real operational environments. My job is to make sure the games are educational, but also fun, interesting and motivating. We use a series of gamification techniques to enhance the experience for players. Players are rewarded by earning points and achievement badges. They feel part of a community where they can ask for help and help others.”

Building this community—called the social learning wrapper—has been a key feature of the success of the games. Learning Developer John Zhang told me this social learning wrapper “encourages more interactions between the player community. It adds collaboration tools, allows players to upload work products, peer review others’ work and collaborate as a team in a social community.”